Clmsttan  2ZUorft  tn  3talp. 


THE 


FREE  ITALIAN  CHURCH. 


OCCASIONAL  PAPERS  NO.  I. 

EDITED  BY  JOHN  B.  THOMPSON, 

MINISTER  OF  THE  GOSPEL. 


NEW  YORK. 

American  Church  Press  Co.,  hi  East  Ninth  Street. 

1872. 

I 


FREE  CHRISTIAN  CHURCH 


OF 

ITALY. 


DECLARATION  OF  PRINCIPLES. 

Adopted  unanimously  in  General  Assembly  at  Milan,  June,  1870. 


1.  God  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost,  has  manifested 
His  will  in  Revelation,  which  is  the  Bible,  the  alone  perfect  and 
immutable  rule  of  faith  and  conduct. 

2.  God  created  man  perfect  in  His  own  image  and  likeness, 
but  Adam  disobeying  the  Word  of  God,  sinned,  and  thus  by  one 
man  sin  has  entered  into  the  world,  and  death  by  sin.  On  this 
account,  human  nature  in  Adam  and  by  Adam  has  become  cor¬ 
rupt  and  sinful ;  and  we  are  all  born  in  Adam  with  the  inclination 
to  do  evil,  and  the  inability  of  doing  well  what  God  has  com¬ 
manded  ;  wherefore,  naturally,  we  are  all  sinners  under  con¬ 
demnation. 

3.  God  does  not  desire  the  death  of  the  sinner,  but  that  he 
should  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth  and  be  saved. 

4.  Salvation  comes  from  the  eternal  and  gratuitous  love  of 
the  Father  ; — it  is  obtained  through  the  expiatory  sacrifice,  re¬ 
surrection,  and  intercession  of  the  Son  ; — it  is  communicated  by 
the  Holy  Spirit,  who  regenerates  the  sinner,  unites  him  to 
Christ  by  faith,  comes  and  dwells  in  him,  produces  peace  in  his 
heart,  giving  him  the  assurance  of  the  entire  remission  of  his 
sins,  making  him  free,  guiding  and  consoling  him  by  means  of 
the  Word  which  He  Himself  has  given,  sealing  and  guarding 


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him  until  the  day  of  the  glorious  appearing  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jes,us  Christ. 

5.  The  Christian,  redeemed  with  a  great  price,  ought  to  glorify 
God  in  his  soul,  body,  and  spirit,  which  belong  to  God,  walking 
in  holiness,  without  which  no  man  can  see  the  Lord.  In  order 
to  this,  he  finds  strength  in  communion  with  Him  who  says  to 
him,  “  My  grace  is  sufficient  for  thee/' 

6.  Believers,  regenerated  in  Christ,  form  the  Church,  which 
cannot  perish  nor  apostatize,  being  the  body  of  the  Lord 
Jesus. 

7.  In  addition  to  the  universal  priesthood  of  believers,  God 
Himself  has  established  in  the  Church  various  special  ministries, 
for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints  and  the  edifying  of  the  body  of 
'Christ,  which  ministries  ought  to  be  recognized  by  the  Church 
itself. 

8.  The  Lord  Jesus  Christ  will  come  from  heaven  and  trans¬ 
form  our  body  of  humiliation  into  a  glorious  body.  In  that  day 
the  dead  in  Christ  shall  rise  first,  and  the  living  who  are  found 
faithful  shall  be  transformed  and  thus  together  shall  we  be 
caught  up  in  the  clouds,  to  meet  the  Lord  in  the  air,  to  be  for¬ 
ever  with  the  Lord  ;  and,  after  His  Kingdom,  all  the  rest  shall 
rise  to  be  judged  in  judgment. 


These  articles  are  held  to  suffice  as  a  testimony  of  a  Christianity 
purely  evangelical,  without  pretending  that  there  are  no  other 
doctrines  in  the  Bible  to  be  believed.  It  is  also  clearly  asserted 
that  this  te  Declaration  of  Principles  ”  does  not  pretend  to  infalli¬ 
bility.  The  Word  of  God  is  alone  infallible  and  immutable.  Nor 
is  it  looked  upon  as  the  cause  or  title  to  salvation,  but  simply  as 
the  outward  bond  of  unity  in  the  faith  and  the  banner  of  the 
Church. 


CONSTITUTION. 

Adopted  unanimously  in  General  Assembly,  at  Florence,  November,  1871. 


TITLE  I. 

THE  CHURCH. 

Art.  i.  The  Free  Christian  Church  of  Italy  is  formed  out  of 
the  various  particular  churches  which  adhere  to  its  Declaration 
of  Principles,  and  to  its  Constitution. 

The  act  of  adhesion  becomes  valid  when  accepted  by  the  Evan¬ 
gelization  Committee,  and  sanctioned  by  the  General  Assembly. 

Art.  2.  The  PVee  Christian  Church  of  Italy  is  established  on 
the  basis  of  independence  ;  that  is  to  say,  each  assembly  or 
particular  church,  in  its  local  affairs,  is  independent  of  all  the 
others,  being  united  with  them  only  in  the  same  faith,  the  same 
constitution,  and  the  same  work. 

Art.  3.  When  in  the  same  town  there  are  different  groups  of 
believers,  resulting  from  the  preaching  of  different  laborers, 
these  groups  shall  be  free  either  to  form  one  single  local  church 
or  to  preserve  their  reciprocal  independence,  according  to  Article 
Second. 

The  request  of  a  group  to  be  independent  must  be  sent  to  the 
Evangelization  Committee  for  consideration,  according  to  Article 
First. 

TITLE  II. 

THE  MINISTRY. 

Art.  4.  Gifts  are  recognized  and  acknowledged,  according  to 
the  Word  of  God,  by  each  particular  church  at  will  ;  but  these 
gifts  cannot  be  exercised  in  the  other  churches  of  the  Union  with¬ 
out  previous  recognition  and  acknowledgment  by  the  General 
Assembly. 

Art.  5.  If  it  should  appear,  after  a  regular  proceeding  proposed 
by  a  particular  church,  and  made  by  the  Evangelization  Commit¬ 
tee,  that  one  has  become  unworthy  of  the  Ministry,  its  exercise 
shall  be  interdicted  to  him  by  the  General  Assembly. 

Art.  6.  Every  year  the  General  Assembly  shall  issue  a  revised 


4 


catalogue  of  its  Ministers,  which  shall  be  regularly  noted  and 
registered  in  all  the  churches  of  the  Union. 

TITLE  III. 

THE  ASSEMBLY. 

Art.  7.  The  General  Assembly  is  composed  of  Deputies  from 
the  united  churches.  Each  church  may  send  one,  two,  or  three 
representatives. 

Art.  8.  The  prerogatives  of  the  Assembly  are  : 

To  establish  general  rules  for  the  work  of  Evangelization. 

To  elect  the  Evangelization  Committee  and  examine  its  acts. 

To  modify  the  Declaration  of  Principles  and  the  Constitution. 

To  sanction  the  act  of  acceptance  of  new  churches  which  enter 
the  Union. 

To  judge,  as  a  court  of  ultimate  appeal,  in  controversies  which 
may  arise  in  the  bosom  of  the  said  Union. 

To  exercise  the  sovereign  power  of  the  Church. 

TITLE  IV. 

MEETINGS  OF  THE  ASSEMBLY. 

Art.  9.  The  General  Assembly  shall  meet  annually,  at  the 
time  indicated  by  the  Evangelization  Committee,  and  at  the  place 
appointed  by  the  preceding  Assembly. 

Art.  10.  At  the  opening  of  each  Assembly  the  President  of  the 
last  Assembly,  or  the  President  of  the  Evangelization  Committee, 
shall  be  the  Provisional  President,  and  the  Secretary  of  the  last 
Assembly  shall  be  the  Provisional  Secretary. 

Art.  11.  The  officers  of  the  Assembly  are  :  President,  Vice- 
President,  Secretary,  and  Vice-Secretary.  While  in  the  exercise 
of  their  offices  they  may  not  take  part  in  the  discussions. 

These  officers  are  elected  after  the  recognition  of  the  creden¬ 
tials  of  the  representatives. 

Art.  12.  Election  to  office  is  valid  only  by  obtaining  a  major¬ 
ity  of  the  votes. 

Art.  13.  All  the  representatives  of  the  churches  of  the  Union 
are  electors,  and  eligible  to  office. 

Art.  14.  No  member  of  the  Assembly  shall  speak  on  the  same 
question  more  than  three  times,  and  that  within  the  limits  of  the 


5 


utmost  brevity,  in  order  not  to  disregard  the  right  of  others  to 
speak.  Nevertheless,  the  Chairman  of  the  Evangelization  Com¬ 
mittee,  or  of  any  special  committee,  is  always  permitted  to  make 
explanations. 

Art.  15.  The  decisions  of  the  Assembly  in  matters  of  faith 
shall  be  unanimous  ;  in  all  other  matters,  by  a  majority  of  the 
votes. 

Art.  16.  The  order  of  the  day  shall  be  prepared  by  a  com¬ 
mittee  chosen  by  the  Assembly,  and  business  in  course  shall 
obtain  precedence.  Proposals  pertaining  to  matters  of  faith  shall 
not  be  inserted  in  the  order  of  the  day  unless  supported  by  the 
absolutely  favorable  endorsement  of  two-thirds  of  the  particular 
churches  previously  invited  by  the  proposing  church  to  deliberate 
on  the  subject. 

Art.  1 7.  No  representative  of  the  churches  of  the  Union  may 
absent  himself  from  the  Assembly  without  permission  of  the  same. 

TITLE  V. 

THE  COMMITTEE. 

Art.  18.  The  Evangelization  Committee  shall  consist  of  not 
less  than  five,  nor  more  than  seven,  members.  The  Committee 
shall  be  elected  annually.  Its  members  are  re-eligible. 

Art.  19.  The  office  of  the  Committee  is  to  superintend  the 
work  of  Evangelization,  without  lording  it  over  God's  heritage  ; 
to  collect  the  funds  necessary  for  the  work  ;  to  help  such  laborers 
as  are  related  to  it,  or  received  by  it  to  the  work  ;  and  to  provide 
the  necessary  training  for  the  work,  properly  directing  and  inspect¬ 
ing  the  teaching. 

Art.  20.  The  Committee  exercises  the  executive  and  adminis¬ 
trative  power,  and,  in  the  absence  of  the  Assembly,  is  the  legal 
representative  of  the  Free  Christian  Church  in  Italy.  Conse¬ 
quently,  all  its  acts  are  done  in  the  name  of  the  church. 

Art.  21.  Every  year,  at  the  opening  of  the  Assembly,  the  Com¬ 
mittee  ceases  from  its  functions,  and  entrusts  to  the  Examining 
Committee  the  report  of  its  doings,  to  be  verified,  discussed,  and 
approved  by  the  said  Assembly. 


EVANGELIZATION  COMMITTEE. 

Appointed  in  General  Assembly  at  Florence,  November,  1871. 

A.  R.  Van  Nest,  D.  D. ,  American  Church,  Florence, 

President. 

Paolo  De-Michelis,  Evangelist  in  Pisa, 

Secretary. 

John  R.  McDougall,  M.A. ,  Scotch  Church,  Florence, 

Treasurer  and  Foreign  Secretary. 

Francesco  Lagomarsino,  Evangelist  in  Milan. 

Alessandro  Gavazzi,  Evangelist  in  Rome. 

Salvatore  Ferretti,  Evangelist  in  Florence. 


Florence,  Italy,  April  i,  i8p2. 

This  is  to  certify  that  our  beloved  and  honored  brethren,  the 
Rev.  Dr.  John  B.  Thompson  and  the  Rev.  Alessandro  Gavazzi, 
have  been  appointed  a  deputation  to  the  United  States,  to  make 
known  to  Christian  friends  in  America  the  details  of  the  interest¬ 
ing  work  of  God  going  on  in  Rome  and  throughout  the  Kingdom 
of  Italy,  and  to  ask  their  sympathy,  prayers,  and  aid  in  carrying  on 
the  Evangelization  of  this  beautiful  country,  so  long  barred 
against  the  entrance  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  but  now  open 
from  one  end  to  the  other  for  the  free  proclamation  of  the  ever¬ 
lasting  Gospel.  Abm.  R.  Van  Nest,  Jr., 

President  of  Evangelization  Committee  of  the 
.  Free  Italian  Church. 

John  R.  McDougall, 

Foreign  Secretary. 


15  fVest  $6th  Street ,  New  York,  May  17,  1872. 

Somewhat  extensive  enquiries,  while  I  was  in  Italy,  among  those  familiar 
with  the  religious  movements  in  that  country,  and  constant  study  of  those  move¬ 
ments  since  my  return,  fully  convince  me  chat  the  Free  Italian  Church  opens  the 
best  door  for  efficient  and  hopeful  religious  operations  among  the  Italian  people. 
The  clearest  signs  of  an  Evangelical  revival  are  to  be  found  there  :  and  I  sincerely 
hope  that  our  countrymen  who  look  and  pray  for  a  Gospel  dawn  on  that  beautiful 
and  most  interesting  land,  will  aid,  to  the  full  extent  of  their  ability,  in  carrying 
out  the  plans  of  the  Italian  Committee,  whom  Dr.  Thompson  and  Signor  Gavazzi 
represent.  THOS.  E.  VERMILYE. 

In  Rome,  a  school  of  the  prophets  to  train  evangelical  ministers,  from  out 
of  the  native  population,  to  become  pastors  of  the  churches,  which  are  now  spring¬ 
ing  forth  all  over  Italy,  like  stars  in  its  long  night  !  American  Christians  should 
vie  with  each  other  in  promoting  Italian  evangelization. 

HENRY  WARD  BEECHER. 

1  approve  this  work  and  give  it  my  hearty  commendation. 

HOWARD  CROSBY,  WM.  H.  BOOLE, 

W.  ORMISTON,  ROBERT  CAMERON, 

E.  P.  ROGERS,  N.  W.  CONKLING, 

ROB’T  R.  BOOTH,  GEORGE  B.  CHEEVER, 

MORRIS  C.  SUTPHEN,  WM.  H.  FERRIS, 

CHARLES  F.  DEEMS,  and  others. 


STATEMENT  OF  FACTS. 

The  Free  Christian  Church  of  Italy  consists  of  thirty-five  con¬ 
gregations,  each  having  its  own  Evangelist  or  Pastor,  with  an 
aggregate  of  communicants  and  hearers  larger  than  that  of  any 
other  Evangelical  organization  in  Italy. 

Its  Confession  of  Faith  is  a  Declaration  of  Principles,  held  in 
common  by  Evangelical  Christians. 

Its  Constitution  is  a  system  of  General  Rules  for  the  general 
good  ;  each  church  being,  nevertheless,  independent  in  its 
local  affairs. 

The  Deputies  of  the  churches  meet  in  General  Assembly,  an¬ 
nually,  to  deliberate  upon  matters  pertaining  to  all  the  churches. 

THE  EVANGELIZATION  WORK 

is  under  the  direction  of  a  Committee  of  Six,  appointed  by  the 
General  Assembly.  The  President  of  this  Committee  is  an 
American  clergyman,  and  the  Treasurer  and  Foreign  Secretary  a 
Scotch  clergyman  ;  all  the  rest  are  native  Italian  Evangelists. 

These  congregations  have  grown  up  from  the  smallest  begin¬ 
nings,  since  freedom  came  to  Italy,  and  are  composed  mostly  of 
the  poor,  unable,  as  yet,  to  support  their  Evangelists. 

The  Italians  are  glad  to  hear  the  pure  Gospel,  and  to  send 
their  children  to  Evangelical  schools.  The  work  of  Evangeliza¬ 
tion  among  them  is  limited  only  by  the  lack  of  means  for  the 
support  of  the  Evangelists. 

An  Evangelist,  with  his  church  and  school,  can  be  maintained 
for  $ 1,000  per  annum. 

Money  received  for  this  purpose  will  be  duly  acknowledged  in 
the  Christian  World ,  the  monthly  periodical  of  the  American  and 
Foreign  Christian  Union. 

The  Commissioners  of  the  Free  Christian  Church  of  Italy 
appeal  hopefully  to  Christians  of  all  the  churches  to  aid  this  work. 

Alessandro  Gavazzi, 
John  B.  Thompson. 


A  BIBLICAL  COLLEGE 


as  a  Training  School  for  Evangelists,  is  essential  to  the  progress, 
and  even  the  life,  of  the  Free  Christian  Church  of  Italy. 

An  Exegetical  Professor  of  Greek  and  Hebrew  should  enter 
upon  his  duties  during  the  autumn  of  1872,  and  others  should 
be  added  year  by  year.  Twenty-five  thousand  dollars  invested  in 
America  will  yield  a  sufficient  income  for  such  Professor. 

The  buildings  necessary  for  such  an  institution  in  Rome  will 
cost  seventy-five  thousand  dollars. 

The  present  is  a  critical  moment  in  the  Evangelization  of  Italy, 
and  what  is  done  should  be  done  quickly.  (See  page  6. ) 

Moneys  contributed  for  these  purposes  will  be  under  the  com¬ 
plete  control,  as  to  its  investment  and  disbursement,  of  the  fol¬ 
lowing  Committee  of  gentlemen,  who  have  consented  to  act  as 
Trustees,  viz.  : 


Morris  K.  Jesup,  of  New  York  ; 
John  Taylor  Johnston,  “ 

Howard  Potter,  “ 

-  _  - of  Boston  ; 

George  H.  Stuart,  of  Philadelphia. 


Remittances  by  check  should  be  made  payable  to  the  order  of 


THEODORE  ROOSEVELT,  Treasurer, 

94.  Maiden  Lane , 

New  York. 


Contributions  for  any  part  of  the  work  of  the  Free  Christian 
Church  of  Italy,  may  be  sent  to 


Young  Men  s  Christian  Association  Rooms , 


1210  Chestnut  St.,  Philadelphia ,  Pa. 


or ,  47  Bible  House,  Ntw  York  City. 


American  Church  Press  Co.,  Ill  East  Ninth  Street,  New  York. 


A 


